By Shawndra Russell

It was never a question where my first novel would be set. I moved to Savannah seven years ago and fell in love with this city. I love that it doesn’t look like any city I’ve ever visited in America. Its European influence is obvious, and the squares, trees and architecture create a welcoming tranquility and elegance without being stuffy—thanks, in part, to our to-go cup culture. The Hostess City is without a doubt an apt name in so many ways, and Savannah will always hold a special place as the first city I chose to buy my first home in and where I started my post-college journey to “real” adulthood.

One of the things I love most about Savannah is how people embrace small businesses. Bars, restaurants and shops owned by hardworking entrepreneurs succeed through determination and originality. SCAD helps create a culture that values creative careers. And bars like The Rail Pub helped revive an area of Savannah that just fifteen years ago was only a shell of the bustling area it is today. Plus, seeing the Starland District grow over the past few years with the addition of Foxy Loxy Café, Green Truck Pub, and lots of other great places can’t help but make your heart swell.

Couple Friends includes over 25 restaurants, bars and other landmarks of Savannah, many of which I’ve written about for South magazine, since I started writing for the Eat section over a year ago. While the setting is ideal for the partying twenty-somethings that love to go on pub crawls, I think Savannah is the perfect setting for a more important reason. Our little big city is a wonderful haven for newlyweds Kieran and Tyler when a job pulls them nearly 1,000 miles away from their closest friends and family. Savannah becomes home and comforts them even when things go awry. It is also the place that allows them to figure out who they are and who they want to be.

Symbolically, Savannah is the ideal setting because it can’t be pigeonholed, much like the main characters. It’s traditional yet progressive, charming yet frustrating, welcoming yet can make you feel like an outsider. Kieran and Tyler have to fight the expectations others try to set for them and each embrace their unique identity in much the same way Savannah has done in its past and continues to do.

Connect with Shawndra on Twitter at @ShawndraRussell or her website www.shawndrarussell.com. Couple Friends is available on Amazon for Kindle, Barnes and Noble for Nook, or Smashwords for any device.